In mathematics, the power of 10 is one of the key building blocks behind the complex world of numbers.

The same could very well be said to the route to success on the rugby field... a fact that will not have been lost on Sale as they made the long journey home from London on Saturday night.

The final scoreline at a sun-drenched Stoop may have been cruel on a Sale side who were better than their first two outings of the league campaign.

However, for the third week in succession, one of the key factors behind the Sharks’ downfall was the play-making arts conducted by the opposition’s fly-half.

Following on from Exeter’s Ignacio Mieres and Saracens’ Charlie Hodgson, this time round Sale were undone by the sublime skills of Quins’ Kiwi master Nick Evans.

The former All Black produced a breathtaking all-round display, kicking three penalties and three conversions, and constantly puncturing holes in the Sale defence as he orchestrated the champions’ attack.

In contrast, while Evans was busy motoring along in top gear, his Sale counterpart Danny Cipriani endured a frustrating afternoon.

Though he kicked three penalties, the 24-year-old’s kicking radar malfunctioned at key junctures with Cipriani missing two penalties and seeing a difficult conversion rebound back off the post, while a number of ambitious passes went astray.

In mitigation, Cipriani is still getting to know his team-mates and his head never dropped. But after three defeats on the bounce, Sale need Cipriani to click into top gear and fast.

The harsh facts are that a Sale side tipped by many to challenge the Premiership elite, lie second from bottom with just one point to show for their efforts.

Fanciful talk of a top four challenge looks just that. Talk. Now Friday’s visit of London Welsh has assumed must-win status.

As for Saturday, having led the reigning Premiership champions 8-7 on the half hour, the battling Sharks were unlucky to be on the receiving end of such a heavy defeat but, once Evans found his feet and the Sale scrum disintegrated, Bryan Redpath’s men simply had no answer to the urgent tempo of Quins’ quickfire attacking sorties.

There were positives to draw on. As an attacking unit, Sale showed encouraging glimpses of what they are capable of in a battling first-half display while their lineout also worked a treat.

Indeed the 23rd minute move that saw Richie Gray and Mark Cueto combine to send Richie Vernon sprinting over the line to score was exceptional. Harlequins 37 Sale Sharks 14

But the scrum got bulldozed the longer the game went on and the fact they conceded two soft tries – both self-inflicted – in the final six minutes reflected poorly on their mental aptitude, which Redpath acknowledged.

“The scoreline is not a fair reflection of the game as a whole. However, we coughed up too much possession and at key times our discipline let us down,” the director of rugby admitted.

“And I don’t think its the people who have come in who have made the mistakes. I wouldn’t say that Eifion Lewis-Roberts, Richie Gray or Danny did a huge amount wrong. I’m just bitterly disappointed as 37-14 doesn’t tell the true story.”

Sale had done well to recover from the blow of conceding a second minute try to Ugo Monye. But they were always chasing the game after the break though at 23-14 down on 74 minutes they were still in the hunt for a losing bonus point.

Instead a poor clearance by Nick Macleod allowed England full back Mike Brown to launch a counter attack that ended with George Robson rumbling over.

And a moment of madness from Will Cliff in overtime gifted Quins the softest of penalties from which Brown claimed their fourth try and the bonus point.

Despite the torrid start to the season, as Redpath was keen to point out the Sharks have hardly had the easiest of starts.

He said: “We have played two of last season’s top five away from home. Now we’ve got to gear everything up for Friday night as its massive for us.”